What Is Joe Mixon's Timeline for Return from Foot Injury? Latest Rumors on Texans RB

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon has not played a game this season after suffering a foot injury during the offseason, and that reportedly is not expected to change moving forward.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that Mixon is expected to miss the entire 2025 campaign with the foot injury and remain on the physically unable to perform list.

This was set to be the Oklahoma product's second season with the Texans after he impressed in 2024 with 1,016 rushing yards, 309 receiving yards and 12 total touchdowns. It was the fifth time in his career he surpassed 1,000 rushing yards in a single campaign.

He played his first seven years with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Durability has been a concern at times for Mixon, as he missed three games last season and was limited to six games in 2020. However, this will mark the most time he has missed in a year since entering the league as a second-round pick in the 2017 NFL draft.

Houston has relied on Nick Chubb and Woody Marks at running back in Mixon's absence, and neither of them have been particularly dominant. Chubb has 419 yards and two touchdowns on the ground on 4.2 yards per carry, while Marks has 348 yards and two scores on the ground on 3.5 yards per carry.

Mixon is not the only notable offensive injury the Texans have dealt with in 2025.

Wide receiver Tank Dell has not played as he recovers from a significant knee injury he suffered in 2024, while quarterback C.J. Stroud will miss his third straight game because of concussion protocol when Houston takes on the Buffalo Bills on Thursday.

Davis Mills has filled in admirably for Stroud and led Houston to victories over the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans.

Facing Josh Allen and the Bills presents an even bigger challenge, and it will be up to the backfield combination of Mills, Marks and Chubb to keep the winning streak alive.